The One With the Essence
by Ritalyn
Summary: "You know how special you are to me, do you?" More than enough men had said those same words, but she had stopped believing them. Her pure essence dying as time went by.
1. Chapter 1

**I'm just throwing this for the heck of it. This is an old story by the name of Bloody Mary that I took away a long time ago. The only difference is that I changed the protocol and it will be composed of the story of three girls but separate.**

**We have Li Hua, Niu (Sam) and Mary Jen. The stories will be written in the same order and all of the stories will connect with one another, with a weak connection between Li Hua's story and Mary Jen's. All of the stories will run in an specific order and some events may be related but will not be seen in the same point of view as one another. The stories may have inconclusive endings.**

**Be warned: some details may be changed to accommodate the characters or the plot into the timeline.**

**Also be warned there will be the next pairings: xOCx (no official mention of the pairing(s)), ZY/XQ, SC/DQ, Lady Wu/SJ/Wu Guotai. As you can see Li Hua's story will occur partly in Wu.**

**Final warning: there will be adult themes like - rape, abuse against women, lots of angst and maybe an unhappy ending.**

**And to make this official: **_Disclaimer - I do not own character's in this story besides any background character and my official OCs (Li Hua, Niu (Sam) and Mary Jen. _

As a final side note, words with a number at the end of it will appear with a definition at the end of the chapter.

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 1: When One Questions Her Origin

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It had been many days since he had seen her, and also too many months since he had touched her. But more sadly it had been many years since she had been sent away.

She was a beautiful woman, a woman comparable to the beautiful Diao Chan, but she was also taken. She was taken and it was his fault, her suffering being engrained into his mind as he imagined the pain she must have gone through for all the past years. A pain that on her behalf would double as her body had to act, against her heart and mind. But all was done for duty and not out of love. The hope for survival was more than what one could have ever imagined.

Zhou Yu walked around the palace a few days after she had been given away to lord Cao Cao. Her pain was the same pain that he would forever share with the distance. It was the pain that no one understood, the pain that came from a broken heart. And not even his beautiful wife could pacify the regrets that would accumulate over the years, until said regret consumed him.

Xiao Qiao wasn't happy. Even her bubbling personality seemed to drop as she tried to connect with her stranded husband. Her unfruitful marriage was part of her unhappiness. Her husband was stranded in a way only a man suffering could have been. And their marriage was deteriorating. Xiao knew that something had to be done soon. She knew of the results she imagined but had no route determined to take control over her and his happiness, their marriage dying like a wilting flower.

It was from afar in one of Wu's main base that she observed her husband. The man walked with a firm footstep, each step an indicator of health and virility. But no man could disguise forever his suffering, because as his wife, Xiao knew better than anyone of the façade he carried around. Their shared bed having been abandoned by him during the long nights she stayed awake staring at the ceiling, their union seemingly forced. Long gone were the days of their shared nights.

"Xiao?" a voice asked from behind the petite woman, a voice she recognized from her elder sister Da. Xiao was about to turn around but was paused by the hand of her elder sister, she now stood beside her.

"Have I lost him?" Xiao asked the air as her eyes swelled with tears, her unhappy marriage becoming a base for her sadness. Far away but at her sight, her husband could be seen walking in no known direction, his back towards her as if he sensed her eyes trained on him.

"Give him time sister, a man can love all the women he desires. It is our duty as wife's to accept that sometimes, a concubine or a mistress may be more favored by him." Da Qiao said to her younger sister, the woman wisely knowing the duties of her kind. But she had no real competition. The past wife of Lord Sun Ce had passed away shortly before his wedding to her while she gave birth to his second child.

"But she was none of that to him." Xiao pouted knowing the situation her sister had at hand, a newborn that was not hers becoming part of the young woman's responsibilities. "He didn't even got to bed her," Xiao finished as she wondered how the interaction between the would have been concubine and her husband have been back in their days. Back in the days when Xiao was not part of Zhou Yu's life.

"Yes," Da began, her hand brushing a few strands of hair from her sister's face. "But when he married you, he promised you his loyalty as a husband. He is such a good husband to you that he even got to the point of sending her away." The older sister finished as she stared into the big eyes that made the younger Qiao attractive to the male kind.

"But why was she so important?" she wondered out loud, her mind going once more towards her fixation as she studied once more the composure of her husband. His back was still to her, his movements being planned as he if he knew that Xiao Qiao was observing him. Still he made no hint of recognition towards his wife.

"Sometimes to understand an actual event, you must study was happened prior to it." Da said as she fixed her eyes away from her sister and to the handsome man that could have had any woman of his dreams.

"That's something Zhou Yu would say." Xiao said quietly as she observed her husband meeting with her brother in law. Sun Ce was acting all exited, meanwhile Zhou Yu spoke to his best friend with a calm demeanor. "Do you think Sun Ce could tell me their story?" Xiao wondered as she noted a few similarities.

"I believe I have someone better for that." Da answered quietly as she and her sister saluted their husbands from afar, the younger sister moving slower than usual. "She was Lady Wu's maid, she must know the full story behind her."

"But she's not a very inviting person," Xiao told Da as both women had their eyes fixated on their husbands, both which were walking slowly in their direction. "Plus she's too busy overviewing the people's need." She finished as she recalled upon the duties of Lady Wu.

"Not that Lady Wu, more like… Wu Guotai, her sister." Da finished as the men came up to both females. Sun Ce gifting his wife with a kiss on the lips, meanwhile Zhou Yu put his arms around Xiao and gently kissed her head.

"So what are you two ladies up to?"

Four days had passed since Xiao knew of Wu Guotai. The woman gently accepted her visit, when the elder brothers of Shang Xiang distracted the young child and her younger brother, Lang. The room where both women were meeting was silent. A small table separated them both meanwhile the elder woman prepared a cup of tea for the early morning in which she met the wife of Zhou Yu.

Tipping the tea slightly the woman filled first a cup, once she finished filling two cups; she placed the china upon the table and sat down. "What can I help you with darling?" Wu Guotai asked the young woman as she accommodated her full figure into a more confortable position.

Xiao took and deep breath and without beating around the bush she asked, "who is Li Hua?"

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(1) Wu Guotai - is the fictitious sister to Lady Wu wife of Sun Jian. She appeared in book Romance of The Three Kingdoms (RTTK)

(2) Sun Lang - fictitious son of Wu Guotai and Sun Jian, along with Sun Shang Xiang both are half brothers to Sun Ce and Sun Quan (RTTK)

**Thank you for reading.**

**Edited: 10.20.2014  
Edited: 02.25.2015**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello and welcome back. I felt like updating this chapter, at the end of the story is the glossary. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 2: When the Stem Brought a Flower

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She had come from an unknown family. Gifted as a young child to Sun Jian, when my lord visited Hangzhou in search of gifted men prepared for war.

The coast had a small population, seeing as the land was not the best for agriculture, but it was famous for the salty fishes the men captured. Their skills were more related to the water than to the land.

Even thought it was rare, there were a few events in which men tall as eight and nine chi (1) arrived to the coast. Their skin was red and painful looking, while their nose and lips had a thin consistency. However, most of them carried two striking features that called the attention of the locals, and it was their fair hair and light colored eyes. Also the texture of their hair was different from the straight and thick hair of the locals.

Few of them stayed for long, but some never desired to leave the land. My sister was with Sun Jian during that peculiar visit, Sun Quan being recently born and still dependent on her. It was indeed a different site to behold. They stayed there for a couple of weeks, my lord noticing that the majority women of this land tried to keep a prudent distance from those men.

It was near the tidal bore at the Qiantang River, a magnificent site where the water created a frozen wave. Few men stayed to observe the event, some of them enamored with the different place they came upon, their stories of other lands captivating the few locals who had the capacity to understand them.

But they were rascals. Seeing as the women didn't desired to mix with them they procreated with prostitutes. A few children being born out of those unions, but after close to a year of their visit, the men decided to embark once more. Many of the women that procreated with them followed in their steps, the children that had resulted from the union being stranded in the streets since the men couldn't take them aboard.

Few good people took in the children, the boys being favored because of their value in society, while the females died of starvation in the streets. My sister was horrified at the sight of the dying children, her heart going towards her own new born son. And the daughter she had that was born with no life.

She insisted for Sun Jian to do something, the horrors she witnessed being enough for Sun Jian to send her and Quan back to safety, to our family. It had been close to ten years since I had last seen my sister, once she returned to us she told us the story of the horrors she saw, but what we never expected was what Sun Jian did next.

Heeding the words of my sister, Wentai (2) began to create order in the coast. The men under his command willingly exanimated the children that were stranded and taken in by the poor families. The strange characteristics of the children made them easy to identify. Most of the children had porcelain skin, their eyes were big and sometimes of a lighter color resembling honey.

It was truly a sight to behold, but only around roughly two or three females had survived against the starvation. The females mostly resembled the males, but there was one that was brought upon as a gift to Wentai. She was different from the others, even thought her skin was more yellowed in tone, it was the color of her hair and eyes that made the locals afraid of her. But what made them more frightened was the fact that she never cried, even as she was dying of starvation.

Sun Jian took the child in his arms and inspected her. He thought she must have been of a healthy weight because she resembled in weight Sun Quan when he was around her age. But he fell for the child, his heart going out for the only child who would probably be rejected due to her characteristics.

"What's her name?" my lord asked the people, but in the event of him inspecting the child, her adoptive parents abandoned her. The man and wife disappeared as if they never existed. Jian looked for them around town, carrying the child in his strong arms as if he were moving a basket full of eggs. But he never found them, and when the locals were asked of them, none knew of whom Sun Jian was referring to. It was during his search that he found his comrade and friend Cheng Pu, the man was finishing recruiting men for the day.

"What's that?" he asked Sun Jian as he stared into the curious clear eyes of the baby that never cried.

"They left me this child…" Wentai said as he studied once more the small child, the fair colored hair on her head reminding him of the feathers a few fair chicks had.

"Has he been weaned (3)?" Cheng Pu asked remembering the though process his wife was going through when she began to wean his first-born.

"Looks too young for it," Sun Jian told his friend as he thought of what to do. "Demou (4)?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think your wife could take her in?"

"I don't think she would mind." Cheng Pu answered as he took the small bundle from Sun Jian, his eyes examining her as he inspected the gender of the child. "I hope I don't get thrown out," Pu said as he humored his friend and without an official order he began to walk away towards the inn his wife was staying at.

"Wait a minute!" Xiao Qiao almost yelled.

"What is it darling?" Wu Guotai asked as she paused completely with the telling her story.

"Why are you telling me this story? How could Cheng Pu's wife take the baby in? How was she fed? Who were those peasants? How is this related to Zhou Yu?" Xiao asked question after question without stopping, but the hand from the older woman stopped her.

"Xiao," Wu Guotai began as she softly held the younger Qiao's hand. "I know you are confused, but you must understand how it all began before you keep feeling that your marriage will fall apart."

"It is falling apart!" Xiao yelled expressing her frustration.

"No it is not, I could tell if it were. So please be calm, and everything will be alright." Wu Guotai pressed lightly on Xiao's hand before releasing it.

A softer expression came to Xiao's face as she thought of her husband and their future together. But then she wondered how Guotai could tell, a question that she verbalized. "Is that what happened to you?"

"Wentai and I had a different set of life. I fell deeply in love with him but you would never imagine how devastating it is to destroy your own sister by having her husband return the feelings."

"Wow… I can't imagine sharing Zhou Yu with Da, she would surely win his affections." Xiao spoke with a sad tone, as if that was happening in real life.

"My child, you are not competing in league with your sister. Also you have a wonderful personality that sets you apart from her. You have everything in your arsenal to win many hearts, including your husband's." Guotai said as she stood up, already knowing that her time was up and her two children would be expecting her attention.

Imitating the older woman Xiao stood up, in her mind more questions being created as she allowed her thoughts to wander. "Did he ever came to love her? How can I compete with her?"

"Li Hua…" Guotai whispered the name as she sent a small prayer to the health of the young woman. "She was a woman that knew how to wait, but the odds weren't in her favor. Being a woman is never in our favor."

"What do you mean?"

"She never got to choose; only valued women like you and my sister will ever get to choose her husband." Guotai spoke softly as the laughter of Shang Xiang and Lang were heard. "Time is up, my children are back." She said it with a smile on her face and tiredness in her expression, her body leaving the small room where the women had tea.

But before he body left the room Xiao yelled, "wait! How do I know if he loves her?"

Pausing next to the door Guotai stared sadly at Xiao. "That is something you'll have to ask your husband."

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(1) Chi – traditional Chinese unit for length. Around the time of the Three Kingdoms, one chi would mean something in between 23.1 cm to 24.3 cm or around 9 inches and a little more.

(2) Wentai – Sun Jian's style name.

(3) Weaned – it's the process in which on begins to feed a child solid foods.

(4) Demou – Cheng Pu's style name.

**Thank you for reading.**

**Edited: 02.25.2015**


	3. Chapter 3

**Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 3: As the Adults Wished Upon

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Li Hua was a joy to have around. She was unique, it was a quality that the children never minded, but as she grew her appearance changed. Her skin became more like ours, her eyes more vibrant than before, but the yellow that topped her head began to grow darker and darker as she aged. It was a wonderful light brown with golden tones, a color that was really uncommon among my people.

Cheng Pu was an exceptional father. He was the doting father his children needed; sometimes he spoiled his four children. Meanwhile he was never good at disciplining them, in reality he had no heart to do so. But his wife was a strong woman. Her temperament was strong enough so that all of her children, including the adopted Li Hua, behaved as exemplary children.

However, their life as a happy marriage ended when she gave birth to a boy. The boy was a healthy one but as it sometimes happened with many mothers she caught a fever right after the birth. We instantly called for her husband to be at her side. One thing that I learned from experience was that once that demon caught control over a woman's body it was rare for the woman to escape. She died a few hours later her skin searing to the touch as her body fought violently one last time against the demon's hold.

The Cheng family mourned her death; the children were oblivious as to why everyone wore white on the day her body was returned to the earth. Pu mourned his wife for years. In his pain felt void around his children but nonetheless he tried his best for them. All of his children were under five, but they were not left motherless as a woman of service took them under her wing. He was, and still is forever grateful towards her.

In Li Hua, he found solace he needed; the small child of four being was wise beyond her years. She would always look for her father, her eyes glowing with glee as she saw the warrior arrive from his trips. She was still young, her tiny mind still not understanding exactly what the word death meant. And like any child of Cheng Pu, Sun Jian extended his power to protect and take care of the children from his dear friend.

"Dad?" a young voice called in the open hall, her small form looking for her father. "Father?" she called once more, her voice this time sounding louder than before, and that was when I met her.

I was a few months pregnant with my first child from Sun Juan, which I named Lang. I had been casted away from the house my sister lived and into the house of Sun Jian's dear friend, because as a second wife and sister to the first wife I was unequal in power. Wentai wanted what was best for all three of us and being in the middle of fight between women, he took the best decision to maintain the peace. He had sent me away.

I hadn't been living for long in that place, only a few weeks, but I adapted quickly. It was around that time that I finally met the child that everyone appreciated, and I could understand why.

The hall was dark that day, Li Hua did not noticed me until she was a few feet away from me. And it made me sad, watching her look for her father, her eyes growing a few tears, as she got tired of finding him. But when she saw me, her composure changed. She grew distant immediately, eyes drying and showing me distrust. It was a change that would always happen with her during her young years, but only with him was she different from the very beginning.

"Hey," I said softly as I doubled over to greet the child, her brilliant eyes capturing my attention. That was the first time I saw those eyes, in my ignorance I never knew a human could harvest the color of the heavens in its eyes. But even thought her eyes resembled the heavens more, I always found myself relating them to the water. Now a days I do not understand why I related it to the water, but maybe it was just the fact that her progenitors came from there.

"Did she say hi?" Xiao asked me as she interrupted me, I guess I had gotten a little carried away in my story.

"No," I answered as my hand grazed the smooth china it held. "She ran away, I never saw her again until my sister paid us a visit."

At first during that visit the small girl would always run away from us. Even thought she knew my sister better than I, she still shied away from us. But it seemed as if Wu and I had an amnesty during that time. Sun Jian was nowhere in our minds, and I cherished the aid my sister provided me during those last months of pregnancy and first months of Lang's life.

We would walk around the beautiful gardens Cheng Pu had in reverence to his wife. Sun Quan was sometimes with us, but sometimes we left him behind. A few times around, always when Quan accompanied us, we could see her watching us from afar, her eyes always falling on my sister's younger son. He was oblivious to it all, but as adults we decided to play matchmakers and tried our best to have them enjoy each other's presence.

However it was very difficult, and even thought we had the aid of the service lady who took care of her, both children were really stubborn.

"Quan almost made a riot on me this morning when I tried to have us eat with Li Hua." My sister retold me her dilemma of that morning. You see, even thought we both were living in the same house, due to our status as wife she made a rule that I could not eat at the table she ate. It was something silly but jealousy will always make us do things no logic.

Days were spent with the same story over and over again. If it wasn't my sister, it was the servant. Her name was Xue, her story would always be different but the most memorable one was when she told me that Li Hua refused to dress to eat at the table. The child knew that she could not eat if she wasn't dressed properly and thus she ran around her room escaping Xue's arms.

But their relationship was all I ever wished to have with Li Hua. You see… Xue had always been around before Li Hua came to this world. She knew all of the workings of the Cheng house and when Pu's wife died, she was the woman that technically mothered his children. He was away most of the time, sometimes for months. Everyone wondered if there was something between the two of them, but that was why it was questioned what function had Xue in his life. She was the woman that ran the house. She ran every detail of the house with a few more employees but everything was controlled by her, even the rare times that Cheng Pu was at home she was still the woman of the house. It always left me wonder, because even to this day she always stood by his side.

She loved all of his children, but there was something about Li Hua that she adored. Their relationship acted like mother and daughter as one day I had learned. It was wrong to listen on someone else's conversation but I found myself doing it often by pure causality.

"Xue, I miss my dad." Li Hua cried as tears streamed down her face, Xue looking at the child but also seemed to be thinking on what to say.

"Princess," that was how they called her in the house. "I know your dad is not around but why don't you try making friends. Quan is quite the gentleman."

"He is not gentle at all," she had stopped crying by now and her face showed some childhood anger.

"And why would you say that?"

"A gentleman will always care for a lady." She was stubborn and oh boy she was.

"And he is not a gentleman because he is not caring for you?" Xue asked her as she moved behind Li Hua and began to work on braiding her hair.

"Yes."

"Honey, you must talk to him if you want him to become your gentleman." That was the last thing I had heard from that conversation, but I smiled as a few days later I saw Quan and her talking.

Afterwards they had both hit it off. Every time Quan would come home to visit, the first thing he would do was to look for her. They bonded quickly and during a few casual conversations between Wentai and Demou, there had seemed to be a future marriage. But with Xue's and my intervention they both backed away and allowed the children to act their age.

"Wait a minute," Xiao interrupted me. "She was meant to marry Quan?"

"That was what the adults intended." Wu Guotai answered as she finished her cup of tea. "Many years later all of us got together to discuss their engagement, but it never happened."

"Why?"

"Because our destiny plays a bigger role in how we live our life. She really just had no say in her destiny."

"But what happened that she never got to marry Quan?" Xiao asked as we both got up, my children making their ruckus as they arrived at our quarters.

"Let us wait for tomorrow, there is still more that happened before that."

"Could I bring Da?"

"Of course, it is always lovely to have company." Wu Guotai finished as she kneeled down and greeted her children. Both Lang and Shang Xiang of them jumping to her open arms.

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**There are no definitions in this chapter. **

**I'm throwing out rough chapters for this story, I'm really not editing them until I get the time, but when they are edited sometimes there are many details that I add. I'll keep most chapters short because I want to be capable of writing more often this story. But as the story gets more complicated chapters may grow longer. Let us just wait and see.**

**Thank you for reading.**

**Edited: 03.03.2015**


	4. Chapter 4

**Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 4: What He Hides in the Dark

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Zhou Yu was a man of a few words, but his actions sometimes spoke volumes. And one can say that he did try his best, but his heart would often betray him constantly, his wife sometimes getting caught in the crossfire.

Xiao knew that he would often wake up at night and take a midnight stroll across Wu's gardens. She would always wonder where he would go to during those walks. Was it towards a place that reminded him of her? Or was it just him walking randomly? She had no knowledge of what truly happened and one night, when she heard him open the sliding door adjacent to the room she slept in did she decided to investigate.

Zhou Yu walked as he normally did, his eyes looking at the sky as he wondered if she was also staring at the same sky as him. He was oblivious to his wife, his mind so deep in thought that he never noticed a small petite form following after him. It took him close to five minutes to arrive towards a small pond, where a few flowers bloomed. He sat down near the bank of the pond, his hand ripping a flower and bringing it towards his lips.

He never spoke a thing, but his body stayed frozen in the same spot, his eyes releasing the pain he felt. There were a few tears, but he allowed them to fall. The sight was something that made Xiao's heart twist in pain, she was oblivious to his pain. But when she thought of moving next to him to console him, she stopped and hid behind a tree as she noted a female moving towards her husband.

The night was dark, but the moon was high in the sky, however the face of the woman remained unknown to Xiao. There was a stilled silence as she kneeled down next to Zhou Yu, but he did not move under her presence. And appearing as if she did not care of the well being of Zhou Yu's marriage, the woman threw her arms around him and pulled him against her vast breast.

"Oh Zhou!" she said quietly as she felt him wrap his arms around her. "It is alright, you are not alone." Her voice was soft, close to whispering as he held on and cried.

Xiao felt her heart break at watching her husband find comfort in the arms of another woman. Her hand was closed in a tight fist as she trembled with the sight she was watching. _"He promised…"_ she whispered to herself but she was stubborn and decided to stay, even if she risked her heart safety.

"Lady Lu…" Zhou Yu called the name of woman once he had finished crying, and as he pulled out from her hold he spoke, "you will never understand." By then he had pulled himself from her hold and sat down staring at the still water that reflected the moon.

"Maybe I understand more than you think," she answered him as she mimicked his movements, both of them sitting side to side. "You are not the only one that has lost someone dear." After those words both were quiet for a few seconds before she continued once more. "I have lost more than one could think of… and sometimes I wonder if they are doing all right. I wonder if they are alive and well, or maybe if they still remember me. But I think I will never know the truth, maybe I will have to forget them all one day and try to live my life."

"Lady Lu, you have a way with surprising me everyday." Yu told her as he looked into her eyes.

"I try my best."

Zhou Yu turned his head towards the woman at his side, his eyes admiring her beauty as he reminded himself of the similarities both women had. "Tell me."

"Yes?"

"Why is Lu Meng not with you tonight?"

"I wanted to be alone, I wasn't really expecting that you were on the same boat as I." Lady Lu said as she moved closer to Zhou Yu, her head resting on his shoulder. It was something she knew that she shouldn't do, but she felt as tired as the man next to her. "I still love him."

"I'll never stop loving her," Zhou Yu's voice was full of remorse. "I know I can never give myself full to Xiao. She's all I can think of, she's always in my dreams, I see every memory we shared every single day. I can't blame Xiao, but I cannot love her."

For Xiao that was the last thing she wanted to hear. The jealousy she had felt when she saw him with that woman, vanished when she remembered who she was. She felt betrayed, not once but twice. Lady Lu was a friend to her, and now she discovered that the woman didn't have her best interest at heart. She was a traitor. But as Xiao continued to listen to her conversation she forgot of the pain that woman's knife brought into her life and suffered silently at her husband's words.

His words were repeated constantly inside her head as she ran away. In her distress her cries and movement alerted the pair of her presence, but when Lady Lu turned around it was already too late. Xiao was a shadow running in the night.

"I think that was Xiao." Lady Lu told him as she placed some distance between the two of them. "She heard everything." Her hands were to her mouth, a nail being softly bitten as she worried for her friend's well being.

"Lady Lu, let her go," Zhou Yu said as he placed his hand on her arm, stopping any movement that may come from her. "I'll deal with Xiao tomorrow."

"You asshole!"

Zhou Yu had been expecting that reaction, knowing the violent tendencies Lady Lu had. "Jen, I cannot cover the sun with my hand. Xiao deserves to know the truth, I just didn't wanted to tell her this way."

"Oh, way to go Romeo. You've just fucked your wife's mind. You do not deserve her as a wife, you should be ashamed of yourself." Zhou Yu wanted to stop her but she ignored his attempts. "You deserve the throne as the biggest asshole alive."

"Jen, stop it!"

"No, I will not!"

"Stop it, what if it was you instead of me. What if you were the one hiding this from your husband? What if every single time you had sex with your husband someone else was in your mind? It is wrong, I feel as if I'm betraying both women at the same time. I love her Jen, and I cannot do anything about it because I sent her away. And trust me I care for Xiao, she's wonderful, beautiful and she is trying where I'm failing. I don't want to hurt her, nor feel as if I'm deceiving Li Hua. You are accusing me of something I am not, I know both of them must be hurting, but is what I feel so insignificant that I'm the bad person?"

By now both were standing, their eyes at the same level as they fought.

"No Zhou, you are not acting like the strategist you are." Lady Lu spoke as she glared at him, her tone calm as she felt distance against the man. "Had you known you would feel this way, you wouldn't have sent her to that _man_. I did not know Li Hua, but I can tell from afar that you made your worst mistake ever."

"Jen, there are books written for strategy, but there's not a book written for matters of the heart."

"Of course there are not, you do not treat a significant other as a battle strategy. That is just inexcusable, that's like being a piece of shit."

"And don't you think I'm suffering everyday for that? Don't you think that it is consuming me? I want her to be all right but I don't know how she is doing. I want her by my side but I made a mistake." Zhou Yu was now beginning to sound desperate, but in her rage Lady Lu never noticed his distress.

"I also want them to be all right but I will never be sure. I want to be by their side but I don't know how to leave. I want to be there with them, but I had no choice. No one gave me that, I could never decide if this is what I wanted, but you got to decide. I didn't." And the ram of tears began. "I didn't." Lady Lu had fallen to her knees at that point, her whole body expressing what she hid from everyone.

"I always wonder what my life would be like with her here, I wakeup thinking she's in my arms but she is not."

"Zhou Yu, Lady Jen that's enough." A booming voice said as another man appeared, his arms quickly going around Lady Lu as he pulled her up. "Both of you should remember that what is done is done. There is no going back." The man said as he began to walk away with the woman. "Good evening Lord Zhou Yu, I do believe you have a wife waiting for you."

"Good evening Lord Lu Meng. Thank you for your reminder, I hope this stays between us three."

"Can't promise what everyone in this place already know. Redeem yourself with your wife, she deserves it after all that happened."

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**There are no definitions in this chapter.**

**I tha****nk SilentNinja**** for your review, hope you and everyone else enjoyed the this chapter. And as I promised myself, I updated in March. Don't know when the next update will come. So see you all.**

***This has not been edited.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 5: How They Became Friends

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"Da, do you have any idea where Xiao is?" Wu Guotai asked the elder Qiao. She was standing up from the small table she used to share with the younger Qiao only a day before.

"I'm not sure, she could be in her room." Da said softly as she imitated the movement of the older woman. "I'm worried for her, she should have been here an hour ago." And true it was. Da knew Xiao the best and even though lateness was something common for the younger sister, Da knew when things got strange.

"Then allow us to cease your worries." Both females moved out and began to head towards the quarters Xiao was supposed to share with her husband. Once there, Da called Xiao but when the younger sister responded with a _'Go away!'_ both women decided to enter and intervene with the younger sister.

"Xiao, what's wrong?" Da asked as she found her sister lying on her bed. Xiao didn't look like she normally would. It was her whole appearance that was different. Her eyes were red and with a dark shadow underneath them. Her hair was completely disheveled, stray locks going everywhere as she lay on top of her pillow. And it was that pitiful appearance that Xiao had what made Da come closer and hug the woman that acted unresponsive. "Tell me Xiao, what's going on?"

But all Xiao needed was a little probing from her sister to renew the crying she had done in the last few hours. But being honest it had lasted all night long. No words came for a while, but the sounds of Xiao's hiccups and cries adorned the air around them.

And even though Wu Guotai felt like an intruder she moved closer to the younger Qiao and held her to her breast. "Tell me my child, what's wrong?" It was the mothering features Guotai had. She couldn't control it but she couldn't stand the sight of the young female crying.

Guotai's action proved to work as if a magical switch had been turned on. Just like that Xiao Qiao began to speak. "He loves her, he still loves her." It was a soft murmur but both women understood why the wife of Zhou Yu cried.

"Dear child, you need to give time. Love is not something that can easily die, time will heal all wounds." Guotai spoke from experience, her voice holding still to the grief of loosing a loved one.

"How did they ended together?"

It didn't took long for Guotai begin the telling of a story as all three stayed on the bed Xiao was meant to share with her husband.

"Li Hua was a good child, she wasn't like all others. But even if it might sound like something crazy, Gongjin (1) wasn't really interested in her at first. Back then it had always been Quan and Li Hua, both adored each other. And I was glad I got to witness it all…"

Li Hua had transformed into someone that I loved to share my time with. She was like a daughter I still haven't had. She was the daughter I wished to have when I was pregnant with Lang. But everything became a full surprised when I gave birth and it was a boy. For Wentai that was one of the greatest news he could have had.

I don't really know when I had grown close to that young girl, but after she had a fight with my sister, she got really attached to me. Even thought Quan and her were beginning a beautiful friendship, she began to eat with me every morning. Xue from time to time came to join us, but most of the time it was just the two of us. And just like that we grew attached to one another, but our relationship was nowhere near what she had with Xue. However I loved her just as much as I love my children and my sister's.

"Lady Guo?" She used to call me that when younger, sometimes not understanding why I was never called by my title as Lady Wu. But back then my sister rejected the notion of allowing another Lady Wu to be the wife of her husband. And that was the story as to why everyone in the house called me Lady Guo or Guotai.

"Yes?" I responded as I ate a small ball of rice.

"Why is Lady Wu so mean?" I remember nearly spitting my ball of rice, I laughed in a free tone and she imitated me. Back then she didn't understood why I laughed, but I was happier back then.

"Lady Wu is not mean," I began to tell her. "Wu is just… strict. She loves to have order but she is not a mean person. Her children love her and the people love her too. She is a beautiful person and someone to be admired."

"But she is mean. Do you admire her?"

I paused for a moment and soon enough I continued as I responded with a yes. Li Hua didn't asked why I admired my sister, but the truth was that she was a beautiful person, and still is. Because even with all the hate she appeared to have, she fought a powerful war against herself. She did not want to control people; we all didn't want understand the pressures she had. Because if it weren't for her political influence, we wouldn't have the Wu we have today.

We spent many times eating like that. Li Hua always having a new question to ask. She was insatiable and her thirst for knowledge made her father pay for her education. Every day she came to me with something new she had learned, and just like that I saw as she began to grow.

And it was during one of those play dates my sister had planned that Li Hua began to see Quan in a different light. He wasn't most of the times good with her, and he used to try his best to annoy her. But Li Hua was a free spirit and never allowed him to abuse of her.

That day everything was different, my sister and me were speaking of my pregnancy, while we left the children to play alone. It was our faults as adults, but thanks the heavens Quan was there. I never saw what had occurred between Quan and Li Hua, but when we heard a yell and soon after two splashes of water we ran towards the river.

The children had fallen, and just like that I saw my sister ran into the river to save her child. We both knew how to swim, but the children did not. And so the search began, but we felt our loss when we actually thought that both children had drowned in the water. A day went by and there was no sign of both children, then a second day and a third. At the third day we gave up, the search being called to a halt as we began to believe the worst.

Wu was miserable for those days. The pain of loosing a child being the worst thing that we could ever imagined. I consoled my sister, but that night became the scare of my life as I began to give birth. Lang was still too young, and I was too unprepared for what happened next. Half a day went by and I thought that death would capture my child or me. Wu was with me all that time. She yelled at me and held my hand as she gave me all the aid in the world.

And thus early in the morning and dead tired I heard the cries of my boy. It was the best feeling in the world, but everything got better that day when we heard a commotion with the servants. Everyone was yelling and we never understood why, but soon we heard the steps of two children. It was Li Hua and Quan, and both of them were alive.

There was a grand celebration in the halls, but that night Li Hua along with Xue came into my room. She was clean and healthy, but was also deeply curious as to why I wasn't there to receive her. Xue allowed her to stay that night in my room and it was then that she told me everything that had occurred.

You see, Li Hua and Quan were at their childish fights. Both of them were playing next to the river, but Quan began to annoy Li Hua. She was mad at some words he told her and she began, "take it back!"

"No!" Quan yelled back at her from his spot on the floor, he was creating a fortress.

"Take it back!" Li Hua wasn't aware that with every word she spoke she gave a step back. She was mad at him and was ready to turn around and reach the adults with her tantrum. But that never happened because by then Li Hua was already at the border of the river, and when she tried to turn around she lost her balance.

That was when we heard the yell that came from her.

At that precise moment Quan had turned around to say something, but as he saw her fall he quickly ran and threw himself after her. Those were the two splashes we heard, but both children did not really know how to swim. Even thought Quan knew very little, he was still too inexperienced. He did what he could to save them both, but the river took them downstream.

It was all too quick, and Li Hua had hurt her head and fainted. She told me she slept during the ride in the river but the bump on her head told us otherwise. It was only later, when I asked Quan, that I learned that he somehow pulled both of them out of the river. He pulled Li Hua towards a safe spot and slapped her back to see if she would wake up.

The young girl coughed some water out and woke up to see the face of Quan. At that time he did not understood that he had saved her life, but both of them hugged.

"I wont let that happen again," Quan told Li Hua, as he had gotten scared for her safety. And thus Quan became Li Hua's guardian. He was always watching over her, and she was always looking for him.

It became natural to find them both together. As children that wasn't something we would worry, but as they began to grow everything changed. We did our best to separate them, but maybe that was one of the things we did wrong. Because by the time we had separated them, we opened the door that ended with Li Hua being sent away. Had we not separated them, we would still have our Li Hua safe and sound.

"Wouldn't she have become Zhou Yu's wife?" Xiao asked as she looked down at her hands, the nails were bitten away.

"No, she was meant to marry Quan when she was fourteen. That was still a year behind before Zhou Yu thought of her as a woman."

"Why didn't it happen?" Da asked as she took one of Xiao's hands away from her mouth.

"We had tried to separate them too much. Quan was freely enjoying being in the arms of different women, and at the moment he never saw Li Hua as a potential wife. They were still young and immature. Had we forced the marriage everything would have been extremely different, since both of them were seemingly attached at the hip."

"So maybe Quan could tell us more?"

"I'm sure he can," Guotai answered as she stood up from the bed and said her goodbyes to the two sisters as she went to find her children.

"Should we ask Quan?" Da asked Xiao who stared at the ceiling; she was still thinking of the events that occurred last night.

"What can he tell us?"

"Who knows, but we can try." And with Da's insistence both girls went in search for Sun Quan.

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(1) Gongjin – Zhou Yu's style name.

**And it is done. Thanks for the reviews. The plot is fully planned, and this story will have around 103 chapters, lets just hope to get the goal. So there will be lots of chapters in the future.**

**I hope you all enjoyed and you can now go ahead and do your thing. Next update I dunno when it will come but maybe in a week or two weeks there will be one.**

**See ya' all!**

***This has not been edited.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 6: When the Cubs want Pups

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After a few days of trying, both Qiao's had finally gotten into contact with Sun Quan. It was a task they thought to be easy, but they never expected that the younger brother of the leader of Wu to be such an occupied man. He was busy with his last infatuation, and even with his small administrative position, Quan was a difficult man to reach.

He was seventeen at the time, a confident young man that was serious most of the time. Quan was nothing like his older brother, but he wasn't one to act his age. Some would joke around that the man was an old man in disguise, but none did that to his face. What no one was to believe, was that the man that still struggled with a few red marks that marred his face would become the best leader Wu would ever known.

And so it was that Quan had admitted the sisters into his home, his favorite concubine treating them to tea, meanwhile he sorted a few things to have his evening free. It was the first time the Qiao's went into his house, and it was the first time they got to know the sweet woman that lived with him.

"Zhongmou (1) will be arriving a little late, I hope you do not mind the wait." The concubine spoke as she served some tea. "He didn't really wanted to see you two, but I asked him to be more flexible." Once the tea was served she gave a cup to each woman, before trying her leave. As she bowed she said, "I hope the tea is to your taste."

"Wait!"

"Xiao!" Da pulled her sister's hand down as she tried to dismiss the woman. "Leave Lianshi alone, she must have other tasks to attend."

"But-"

"No buts Xiao," Da was being strict with her younger sister, but when a delicate hand touched her shoulder she paused. It was with the turn of her head that Da stared at Lianshi.

"Please do not fight." She told the sisters and they quickly let go of each other. "Is there something you wanted to know?"

"Do you know who is Li Hua?" Xiao quickly asked before her sister tried to interrupted her again.

"I'm sorry to say that you would have to talk to Zhongmou. I had met her once, many years ago when I first met my husband. But besides that I do not have the knowledge to tell you more. We weren't friends, and when Zhongmou and I began, she stopped visiting." She told the sisters as she bowed once more. "My husband will be with you guys in a few minutes." And with a few more words of goodbye Lianshi left the room to do her duties.

A good amount of hours had passed and the twilight had come to the lands. In a small room three people had finished eating as a fourth one took away the used china. And it was with some wine in hand that Sun Quan began to tell his story.

How could he ever forget her? She was never a love interest in his life, but she was as important as any other member of his family. Li Hua was his closest friend, and even if their friendship hadn't survived he still felt close to her.

"Hey Quan!" a young Li Hua yelled as she came towards me. Since I was a child she had always had something special and different. Back then I never knew what it was, but nowadays I sit down and stare at the heavens during clear days just to remember the color of her eyes.

Back in the day we used to daydream a lot. I had told her of my first crush and she told me that she used to eat her boogers. I used to read a lot, while she used to whine every time she had a book in her hands related to politics. Sure, she was curious, but she loved to learn more of plants, animals or herbs than of politics. And maybe she was right, but maybe we were wrong.

I used to follow her around everywhere she went. She was like the little sister I didn't had at the time, and she was the sister that made me play dress up.

"Now you will be my prince," she used to tell me, but I was a little bit bratty.

"I'm the royal one, you are the royal scum. I will not bow to you," I knew the things we said had sometimes no sense, but maybe at that age we had our own language. I just remember that we knew each other so much that we even finished our own sentences.

"But you saved me, you should be something to me." Li Hua whined.

"I can be your guard, no one will take you away from me." I used to tell her as I puffed my chest outwards.

We would usually play like that, and the river that almost took our lives led us towards the place that we would spend our days. It was a beautiful clearing, there were a few small wild animals that appeared from time to time, but it was a peaceful and tranquil place. We used to play house there and we even began to build our own playground, but for us time was short. We never got to finish the house we were trying to build, and I imagine that now a days it must be in an abandoned state.

"Come on Quan," Li Hua would tell me as she pulled on my sleeve. "We need to go, your mother must be worried." And she was actually my timekeeper.

It was something different that the two of us had. Li Hua was usually allowed to roam freely, sometimes getting lost for hours on end, but I wasn't allowed such a free rope. Mother would always worry for my safety, and every time we were playing together I always had a guard close to us. But Li Hua never had any of that.

It was strange for her to disappear for a whole day, but on a few rare times she would spent more than one day away from the house. She was the scandal of the town, because it got to a point were the family stopped searching for her. My mother used to worry but when Li Hua arrived one day full of dirt she had taken a quick dislike towards her. But Xue and Guotai would always defend her. Because I would never go against my mother, even if I wished to do so, Li Hua got mad at me for not defending her.

"Where have you been going to?" I used to ask her every time, and strangely, even though my mother disliked Li Hua she didn't minded to see us play together.

"Nowhere," that was her simple response. But on that day I was really insistent and I continued, until she told me the truth. "I go into the woods." And that simple response wasn't enough for me.

"How come you can stay away for hours?"

"Hmm," she stopped to think, her head tilting towards the sky as she contemplated on what to do. She always did that when she was thinking, but it was more common when we were studying. I never really understood where she went when she did that but strangely she always came up with an answer. "Wanna' go on an adventure?"

"Why not."

"Then you will have to wait." I laugh nowadays at her mischief back then, but she was quick to kiss me on the nose. But she was way quicker to run away. I just never tried to get to her because she used to embarrass me; I was always red when she did that.

It was during one of those early times we used to spend together that we stayed inside after Lang was born. My younger brother enamored Li Hua, and I couldn't really understand her. But she always wanted to play with Lang, we just couldn't. I never understood why Li Hua was so interested in a child, but on one day that Guotai had left us to take care of Lang she expressed something that I never knew how to answer. Not even to this day.

"Hey Quan," my friend would begin as she stared at the resting baby inside his special bed.

"Yeah?" I was quieter than her, but nonetheless I listened to her. But I did ignore her a lot too; when we were older that really wasn't our dilemma.

"Do you one day plan to have kids?"

"I guess so, isn't that what adults do?" I had grown tired of watching my younger brother and I was now sitting next to a door that allowed the sight of a beautiful courtyard. The sun was already beginning to hide.

"I think so," she said quietly as she sat down next to me. "Hey Quan," and she waited for me to respond. "Do you think someday I will have your children?"

"Why not," but we never made it as a couple.

And just as I had tossed one of my arms over her shoulder I heard some yelling. It was the servant that Li Hua spent most of her time with. She seemed to be out of breath and she stopped right at us. She kneeled down at my feet and told me, "Young one, your father has arrived."

"Really?" an incredulous Li Hua nearly yelled besides me. She seemed to be more than happy to hear the news of my father's arrival and just like that both of us had bolted from the door. Li Hua used to yell uncle, meanwhile I yelled for my dad.

"Uncle Jian!"

"Father!" Both of us yelled at the same time as we saw the man in question. And just like that we jumped into his arms. "Dad!" I truly missed him, but I never spoke those words to him.

"I missed you both," father began and as an after thought he added, "my little tigers."

And just like that Sun Quan had finished retelling a few of his memories. It was late at night and the women had to leave his home, to head towards the palace.

"Thank you for your time," Da Qiao told Quan. "But my sister and I have to leave." Da finished as she signaled her sister for them to stand up and bow towards her brother in law.

"Please stop," Quan ordered them as he stood up. "I sent a letter earlier today to both your husbands. I know it's late but please allow me to offer you to stay. Tomorrow in the morning I'm sure my brother will come and pick you up." Quan finished as he gave them permission to leave his office. "Lianshi prepared a room for the two of you. You are both welcomed to stay."

It was with the insistence of Sun Quan and Lianshi that both sisters stayed the night in his home. No one really fought against it and truth was that it wasn't really a great idea to go back towards the palace at that hour of the night.

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(1) Zhongmou – Sun Quan's style name.

**Hope you all enjoyed. I don't have anything else to say so... Hasta la vista.**

***This has not been edited.**


	7. Chapter 7

**No glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 7: When He Tries for his Wife

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Even though Da and Xiao were the visits of Quan's home, the next day they woke up and helped Lianshi clean around. It was the first time both sisters shared their time with the other woman, but soon enough all three of them were enjoying their time.

It was after everyone had eaten that the events of the day were beginning to advance. Sun Quan spent a morning full of leisure as he quietly read a few scrolls that his superior had sent him. Things were peaceful but anything that was really related to politics wasn't one of his favorite pastimes. He found it to be boring, yet still he kept in mind that it was his responsibility. What he did not know was that his responsibility was to grow in a couple of months.

He knew the women were around the house, sharing and doing small talk of things he never bothered to understand. He was a man after all, but just by thinking of the reason behind the Qiao sisters' visit he felt his mood turn sour.

Some would say that he loved Li Hua just as much as he loved his wives, but no one ever understood him. What he felt for her was never something more than a friendship, yet it wasn't a family association. Sure, as many men could say he was attracted to her and if given the chance he would have married her. But he never felt the need to have that with her. They shared together wonderful moments, their most deepest thoughts and weren't shy to be seen holding hands or sometimes hugging each other.

And while people on the outside saw all of that and thought they were in love. They were never in love. They had fallen for their significant others while young, and thus the attraction that could have existed between the two of them was voided. They could tell what the other was thinking, they had their own private language and both felt in bliss every time they spend some time together.

For Quan and Li Hua there were no dramas. True it was that their last years were turbulent, but in the presence of one another, they left the world to the one both shared. He missed her dearly, but as he stayed locked in the memory of his past, a visitor decided to surprise him. It was more than a surprise; his older brother friend arrived with the company of a few others.

Zhou Yu could not come alone. He was a coward. He knew that his wife had heard and seen his interactions with Jen. And he knew that their marriage was hanging by a thread with a looming sword floating around it, an elephant being held by it on a giant cliff. He truly had no hope. It was only with the help of Mary Jen and Lu Meng that his bravery grew.

"Come on Zhou Yu! Enter the goddamn house!" Mary Jen yelled at him as she tried to push the man to move forward. Lu Meng stood besides her, his arms crossed in front of his chest as he entertained himself with the thought of watching two women fighting. "Lu Meng!"

"What?" The man asked as he blocked all expression from his face. However he stayed in his own spot waiting to see the next action.

"Come and help me with this faggot!" Jen yelled knowing that she was clearly insulting Zhou Yu.

"This what?" Lu Meng asked as he moved from his spot, his eyes staring in confusion at the strange vocabulary the woman utilized.

"What is a faggot?" Zhou Yu asked as he finally pulled his weight against the woman, thus making her crash against his back. "Lady Lu, what do you mean?" He turned around, his gaze curious as he had seemingly erased the reason for his visit.

"Umm… yeah…" Jen paused, her light colored eyes trying not to stare at the man in front of her. "A faggot…"

"Jen," Lu Meng did not spoke any more words. He did not understood what she said but knowing her as he had gotten to he knew that the woman was looking for a lie. At that moment everything became a war of eyes, as she looked at both men. They knew she must have been up to something, so when she tried to back away, Lu Meng took a hold of her arm. He was never forceful with her, but he knew there was more to that word than meets the eye.

It was with Lu Meng's hold that Jen began to perspire. She knew it was wrong to insult someone that had become her ally. And she knew she was in deep trouble when she received the heated glare from the one friend that she wished to back her up. She looked at both of them, her eyes moving quickly from man to man, but as she felt a hand tighten around her she knew that her time was coming to an end. She had to speak something or she would have to fear the wrath of the beautiful man. But luckily she knew that they had such a tiny idea of what her word meant that she decided to arm herself with confidence.

And it was with a strained expression that she explained, "a faggot is a really beautiful man. It's like saying _The Beautiful Zhou Yu_, just a tiny bit more casual." And feeling confident, she grinned with the back of her teeth locked together. Something that both men noticed but decided to ignore, they were about to question her some more, but someone interrupted their casual conversation. Because during that time there seemed to be nothing wrong with man handling a woman in public, or so she thought.

"Zhou Yu, my friend!" Quan's voice came from the entrance to his home as he greeted his newest guests. "I wasn't expecting you to be here." And it was a flat lie. Because when Zhou Yu received a letter from his wife, he instantly noticed the handwriting had been forged.

"I received your-," Zhou Yu never got to finish because Lu Meng made sure to elbow him hard enough to notice his wrong doing. "I mean Xiao's letter… you know… my wife."

Quan looked at the trio weirdly before he shrugged. He had seen their interactions, but as a future leader in training he decided that it was not worth it to be brought to attention. "Well come on in, she's eagerly waiting for you." It was a horrendous lie. And just as he said that someone coughed in the background. "Ah Lady Lu, it's a pleasure to finally meet you."

Knowing the monster that was waiting for him, Zhou Yu entered the house, leaving all introductions to a heavily coughing Jen. But as he was behind Quan's back he made sure to stare at the woman with a promise of vengeance.

Zhou Yu moved around the house knowing that if he made too much noise he would end up disturbing the dragon wrath. He moved slowly, making sure to step of the boards that made no sound as he walked along the corridors. His hands were sweating and his heartbeat was as fast as a hummingbird, but he kept moving towards the sound of a wonderful laugh. He smiled to himself as he thought of the early days where he used to wake up with that sound.

He thought that everything was going to be all right. His wife was calm and relaxed and nothing could possibly go wrong with their reunion. But as a failed strategist in the matters of the heart, he entered the room surprising the three females that sat around a table talking.

Xiao was right there staring at him. He saw as if it were in slow motion how her eyes widened at seeing him. He saw exactly how she paled down to Lu Meng's skin color. And he saw how the other two women turned their heads to stare at the intruder only to give him a blank look. But he was completely fixated on his wife, he barely heard when the women said their excuses and left the two of them alone. He barely noticed how his wife's eyes turned to steel as he moved closer to hold her hand in his.

And he never expected his face to be turned to the side as he stared at the floor, his cheek stinging from the impact of Xiao's tiny hand.

From then on everything moved too fast for him to comprehend.

"How dare you!" Xiao yelled at him, she was no longer sitting next to him. Instead she had taken hold of his shoulders and with strength he did not know she had, she pushed him. "You knew I was there!" He was sprawled on the floor as he stared at a ceiling blocked by his wife's face. "I married a pig! You lied to me!" And he felt her foot crashing against his ribs, his side hurting but before she could do anymore damage he evaded her and stood up.

"Xiao please," he could never finish. Xiao was hitting him with all her strength, most of her yells being unheard by him since he was more worried with covering his body from her punches.

"You told me I was the only woman," he felt her hand hitting the back of his head.

"Xiao! I never said that!"

"When I asked you of her, you told me she was a servant! You told me she was Lady Wu's servant!"

"It was true!"

"But you never told me she was Cheng Pu's daughter. You never told me you knew her since she was young." By then Xiao was no longer hitting him, instead she was crying.

"Xiao, please don't cry." Zhou Yu said as he moved closer to his wife, he tried pulling her into his arms only to be pushed away.

"You lied to me," Xiao said as she turned her back to him, her hand wiping away her tears, but they were quickly replaced.

"I never lied to you," he said as he tried once more to pull her to him, but she pushed him away. In the momentum she lost her balance and fell to the floor. "Xiao! You okay?" He asked as he kneeled next to his wife his eyes sweeping with worry and a pain she could not see. He did not wanted to see her cry.

"But you lied to me," she whined as she cried with her eyes closed. And thinking that she would accept his touch, he tried to console her. "Don't touch me!" At that he backed away, in his mind repeating the time when Li Hua had said those same words.

"Xiao please listen to me."

"No!" And as quick as she responded she was once more on her feet. "You lied to me, you married me and you never loved me. You don't love me."

"No, no, no. Xiao please don't say that." But he didn't try to change her mind, still his hand moved slowly towards her

"Zhou Yu, what is a marriage without love? I thought you married me because you loved me." At her words Zhou Yu stopped, his face fully ridden with guilt. And Xiao saw right trough it, and she remembered exactly the pure reason he had married her. "You asshole! You married me so that Ce could marry Da!"

"Now Xiao stop coming to conclusion, we can still make it work." His words had the complete and contrary effect he intended. He had tried once more to hold her to him, but an even bigger slap stopped him from trying.

"Don't you dare touch me! I don't want to see your face ever again!" and with a seemingly childish tantrum she ran away. She felt strong at that moment but as she ran out into a courtyard, falling on her knees to only to cry harder did Jen, Quan and Meng began to feel bad.

"Ziming," a soft yeah was responded in the background. "Did we do the right thing?"

"I believe so, they are married Jen."

"That doesn't mean it will work. They could always separate," Jen said as she remembered a childhood with divorced parents.

"They will make it work. Marriages don't simply break." Meng said as he looked at the woman standing next to him. "Xiao is just acting like a child. Love is not needed for a successful marriage. But Xiao is thinking as if a marriage were a childish fantasy. She needs to learn her place, Zhou Yu is just being too patient with her."

"I don't a marriage can do any good without love."

"Jen," Quan interrupted the two guests. "Both of them will come to terms. Xiao is still young, but Zhou Yu is the right man for her. He cares for her and she cares for him, they just haven't found the right ground. Give them a few months…" and just like that Quan led them towards his home and to his office to share a few drinks.

And it took Jen a bit more time to move; her eyes were still locked on Xiao's body on the floor still crying. "It's just so sad." Jen muttered to herself.

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**Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Now do your thing.**

***This has not been edited.**


	8. Chapter 8

**There is no glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 8: Who broke the fight?

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And once more Xiao Qiao sat with Wu Guotai as they shared some tea together. By then Guotai had fully learned of the last events occurring in the life of Xiao, seeing as it was actually what everyone kept talking of. Even though the younger Qiao hated with passion that everyone knew the last chapter in her love life, she actually basked in the support of her friends.

Many were beginning to frown at Zhou Yu's intention in their union, but the man continued as if he never heard of the rumors that came just as he passed a corridor. People waited until his back was turned to them, but most of them forgot that the hearing was a sense more powerful than the sight. Still he moved on, it was something that even Lady Wu spoke of as she casually talked with her sister.

Zhou Yu had left the palace. He was no longer living in the quarters he was supposed to share with Xiao, instead he had moved towards a house he had in the outskirts of the town. And even thought he visited every single day, he never once bothered to speak to his wife. He continued on with his duties, but his cold demeanor was something that made more and more people side with Xiao. It was like that how he found himself miserable, a drink in his left hand and a scroll in the other. Sun Ce and his brothers watching with amusement as the man drank his sorrows away.

But Xiao was not listening; she wanted nothing to do with her husband. And so every time someone tried to tell her of his condition she answered, "I'm not interested."

Guotai let out an exasperated breath; she hadn't even finished speaking the sentence before the younger Qiao interrupted her. "Xiao, darling." Guotai began as she took a hold of the younger woman's hand. "You are not fighting against Li Hua. Want it or not she was part of Gongjin's life, and you cannot change that."

"The who am I fighting?" Xiao questioned as her shoulders sagged in an unvoiced defeat.

"Against yourself."

And silence ruled. Xiao was quiet as she contemplated Guotai's words. She could not understand why she was fighting against herself when Li Hua was so fresh in her husbands mind. For Xiao, the memory of that woman was just as dangerous as having her living and breathing next to her husband. It was something she thought she would never learn to surpass, but the jealous streak she felt everything she knew he was thinking and missing her pained her.

"Dear," Guotai began. "I was once in your place, my enemy was just as real as yours. But when it comes to matters of the heart, one must never speak with passion." Guotai recommended as she thought back of the time when she and her sister began an internal war.

"Isn't passion what one needs to make a relationship work?"

"Passion is a raw feeling. It is not wrong to feel passion, but it is wrong to act on it."

"Why?" Xiao's curious gaze met Guotai's aged one.

"What does passion means to you?"

At that strange question Xiao tilted her head to the left. A small pout adorned her lips as she though on how to answer that question with wisdom. And thus she began, "passion is when one feels something really strong. Like the love a husband should have for his wife."

"Good," Guotai moved the teacup towards her lips; she drank a little with grace. Her eyes were closed as she thought of all the time she was hurt because of the potent poison her sister carried. "Have you ever thought that passion can also involve hate?"

Xiao moved her head unconsciously towards the left, her eyes staring at Guotai as she wondered what she meant. It was only enough with the gaze the younger woman was giving for Guotai to begin the tale that would explain everything.

You see, when we are born, we are completely defenseless. We depend fully on our mothers to take care of us. Most of us mothers have something akin to our souls that change the moment we hold our young ones for the first time. I had felt the change when I held Lang towards my breast. It was something unknown to me but now a days I know that it was the feeling of knowing that I would blindly give my life for my child.

And even if one would believe otherwise, my sister felt the same for her children. We both loved dearly all of our children, and just as much as I love my sister's children, I knew she loved mine the same. However not everything was as peaceful between the two of us as they are today.

I was born from a different mother whose face I don't remember, but we both shared the same father. While Wu was freshly married, I was no older than twelve springs. She could have been my mother, but I grew mostly without her being there. She left our home to create a family with Wentai, I was left back at home, but I never had anyone interested in me. My father preferred for me to work on the land and to nourish him and his first wife's health. But I couldn't fight against age. I was already past the marriable age, since ten more springs had passed since my sister had left.

It was during a visit that I came to finally meet the man that had taken my sister away. I was away working at the fields, and he was traveling alone from a reunion he once had. I was alone that day. And we both talked, I had no idea he was my sister's husband, but soon enough he began to court me. I fell in love with him; he was a man that woke in me things that I would never expect to exist. And so, instead of trying to solidify our union, I became his mistress when he was far from home.

He never went to visit or get to know my parents, but two springs later was burrowing my father and his wife in the field that I used to work. He had come at that exact time, I was vulnerable, and when he learned of what happened he took me towards his home. On the way our union was solidified, and I had married my sister's husband.

"So you never knew he was Wentai?"

"I had never met him, every time my sister came to visit she did it alone. Only my parents knew him." Guotai gave out a sad smile at the memories she shared. "But he never visited my home, and he never met my parents. It was only to my horror to enter my new home and discover the disaster I had created."

We were all shocked, when my husband discovered that he had married two sisters he was grim looking for days. And we both didn't know how to act around one another. On one part we loved each other dearly, but on the other we despised the attention he gave to either one of us. And we argued a lot. Wu was destructive and quickly showed me that she was the more dominant of us, when during a fight I had lost a child I didn't knew I was expecting. Afterwards I began to accept that I was a second wife and not an equal wife.

"How did you lose it?"

"We used to get in physical fights, and my body couldn't protect my child." Guotai had a far away look in her eyes. "After that I couldn't even hold a child for more than three moons."

It was worrisome, and that was the reason for why I was sent to live with Cheng Pu. Miraculously I could succeed with having a child when living at that house. At first everything was great, and even when my sister came to visit, everything was peaceful. But after Lang was born I was destined to suffer when Wentai arrived at the house.

The once peaceful setting the house had gotten was long gone. My sister could not even see me in an image, all that came from her were hurtful words, all the while Wentai turned a blind eye. During those days of Lang's early life, my husband spent every morning and night with both of us. We were closer than ever before, and surprisingly he was a great father. He was the best man that ever came into my life.

It was with his help that I gained my health once more. All the while Li Hua spent day in and night out with us. We were like a separate family, but Li Hua was a loving child. She tried to help me as best as she could and all of our meals were spent together. But Wentai had another family within the house and he had to be shared between the two of us.

Wu was tolerant at first. She recognized that I needed all the help that could be offered, but the temporal bliss was completely gone in a few days. I couldn't be seen anywhere near my husband, and my privacy was completely invaded.

"Guo, could you please com here?" it was the sweet tone my sister held that made my eyebrows furrow.

"Is there something wrong sister?" I came alone towards her, Lang being carefully tended by Xue and Li Hua.

"Of course there is something wrong!" She hadn't yelled, but something told me that this was going to escalate quickly. And so I allowed her to continue, "you seem to have forgotten the rules of this house."

"Forgive me sister, but you seem to have forgotten that this is not your home." I had answered wrongly, and an impact upon my left cheek indicated that.

"How dare you?" her voice was no longer quiet. Little bi little it kept escalating. "I came here to help you with your bastard son, and this is how you repay me?"

"Last thing I remember you weren't invited." At that time I was defensive, in my mind all I knew to do was to defend my son. "You came here without even sending Lord Cheng a letter, you took control of his house and you made sure to make me feel as uncomfortable as possible. I don't even know how Wentai can stand you."

Lady Wu felt insulted at my words, but she retaliated with more force. "You have no right to call my husband by that name. He simply saw an ugly girl working like a slave. I wasn't with him to satisfy his needs, so he took whatever came easiest." She told me as she took a step closer towards me. "When my parents died he took pity of you. You weren't a bright woman and he knew that you wouldn't last long on the streets."

"That is a lie!" I yelled at her, both of us already a few inches from each other. "Wentai came to me because he no longer desired you. You became cold and uninviting, you changed and not for the better. He told me of all the times you rejected him in bed, how you whined when you weren't treated like a princess. He was tired of you, and I was there for him when you-"

She interrupted me, "when I what?" it was more meant as a challenge. And I accepted it.

"When you only brought him misery." I whispered that part. It was just as she was about to retaliate physically that a small body went between the two of us. I was shocked to say the least, I wasn't really expecting Li Hua to be observing our fight, but being in a house full of children it was wrong for us to have forgotten that.

"Stop it!" Li Hua yelled as she pushed my sister away from me. But she was blinded by rage. Her hand struck her and she pushed the young child aside.

"Someone should have taught you some manners," she was angry, but from the corner of her eyes I knew she was pointing at me.

Before my sister could continue, and I could stop her from going any further someone else had stopped her before she struck the young child once more. By then everything else moved too quickly. Li Hua was crying in my arms, Sun Jian was laying out rules for the two of us. We both quieted afterwards, but it would take far more to get us talking to one another.

Having rivalries with another wife is horrible, but from how Wentai had removed himself from the two of us. I finally learned that what was going on between Jian and I was something different than what went on with my sister and him. We were two different families, but in the end it was always a fight against oneself because Wentai was a just man. It took some time before everything fell into its place between all three of us, but during the time he had technically banned us from his life, he dedicated himself to his children.

"I never thought things were like that." Xiao told the older woman sincerely as she stared at her. Something told Guotai that her message had gotten somewhere, but still it was too early for young Xiao to fully understand it. "Gongjin doesn't have another wife, but maybe you are right."

For Guotai, that felt like a small victory over Xiao's conflict, but she knew that they still had a long way to go.

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**Took me a while to update but now it is done and over. There are many more chapters to go so we still have a lot to enjoy. But right now I'm working mostly on a different story that I plan to have fully finished before I even try to publish it. We'll see how far I can take it. **

**Next update I'll try to see if I can go back to the every two week, but for now let's see if I can get it for next week.**

**So you are all free to do your thing. Comment, fav or whatever you want to do. See ya' all!**

***This has not been edited.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Glosary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 9: As She Forbids their Friendship

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Once more Xiao Qiao was sitting down with the younger brother of the Little Conqueror. This time, her older sister was away as she shared a meal with him and his wife. At first it had been uncomfortable for Xiao, but gaining her nerve she stayed to hear the story Quan had to tell.

"Tell me Xiao," Quan waited for her to respond, his right hand on a glass of wine as he moved it to his lips. A few sips were all it took for him to continue when she answered with a yes. "Why do you want to learn so much of Li Hua?" For being a young man of only seventeen springs Quan was a wise beyond his years, and it was something that made his oldest brother joke because of his seriousness.

Xiao had told herself countless of times the answer to that question, but every time she had to speak it out loud, she tended to get trapped by her own volition. The younger Qiao was a proud woman, she could always be seen with her chin high, and her bright eyes were capable of fooling some. But on the inside she was as insecure as a young child that was left alone in a market. She was often described as a woman with a bubbly personality, but that wasn't always the case, because she felt like a flower that lost a petal with each day that passed. She was withering, and was looking for a cure. What she never knew was that the truth was a unpleasant medicine.

It was only when Xiao felt secure in her answer did she begin, "Li Hua was someone important to Zhou Yu, and she is someone that I could never take away her position. Zhou Yu loves her and as long as he does I'll never have my feelings returned." Xiao was sad, but she tried to mask it with a smile. It wasn't something that was capable of convincing the young marriage.

Still Lianshi spoke, "you need to be more accepting. You are a wonderful person Xiao. And everyone knows that. I do not really know your husband but as a woman I tell you this. To truly love your husband you must accept everything from him. You must love him for who he is, not for who you want him to be." Lianshi finished, her lips offering Xiao a kind smile.

Her words resounded in the younger Qiao's mind. It was like a song that repeated itself over and over and over again. The lyrics changed, but the meaning was all the same. Xiao was not allowed to rest, because even thought most of the people recommended her the same thing, she could still not stomach or accept what could be the truth. However different a culture could be, Xiao could not accept what she considered as something that would continue to hurt her.

However noticing that his visit was beginning to appear uncomfortable, Quan decided that he could tell her something far different from what he had heard. He knew how to stay whitin the topic of his old friend, but carefully he veered the conversation into a different light. "Xiao, do you really know where Li Hua came from?"

At the change of topic she answered, "wasn't she from Hangzhou?"

"Technically yes, but I'm not talking of where she was born." Both females looked at the future leader, Lianshi becoming a spectator to everything that was occurring. And with a grace that he was not known to have, Quan used political skills to distract his audience.

"What do you mean then?" Xiao could not blame anyone, she was curious. But inwardly she punched herself; she had to control the unladylike curiosity she had. And the pair noticed, their lips pulling upwards softly as she tried to manipulate her expression into one of seriousness. A occurrence that was peculiar to those who knew her ways.

"What do you know of Li Hua?" Quan asked her, his head was high, and his confidence was blooming. However at the same time he made sure to not appear as an arrogant person, something that for the first time he was quite successful.

"Umm…" Xiao though on everything she had heard, but noticing she was taking too long Quan spoke for her.

"You already know she was from Hangzhou," Xiao nodded. "And also you know that Cheng Pu adopted her and that she was my mother's servant."

"Yes…" it was a quiet answer.

"Li Hua was more than that. She wasn't Zhou Yu's lover. She was like a sister to us, and the only reason she was mother's servant was because even though mother never told anyone she actually liked Li Hua." Quan looked away with a look that made him appear older than he actually was.

"But from what I heard she never liked her." Soft words came from the younger Qiao, her mind going over all of the stories she had heard.

"It was difficult to not like her." Lianshi spoke, her hand moving over her husband as she smiled at him. Quan returned her smile and quickly turned to his visit.

"She was like the daughter mother always wished to have, and she even tried to have a girl like Li Hua. But every girl that was born from mother died after they were born. Many years later father had found another girl like Li Hua."

"Niu…" Xiao Qiao answered, she knew who he was talking of. Because Niu was a young female that was assigned as a servant for her and her sister. And what made Niu so different was that she was extremely alike Li Hua, but at the same time she was completely different.

"Mother adopted her, but Niu was different. She had a strong spirit and only Bofu (1) and Gongjin could control her."

"Was that why was she assigned to me and sis?"

"I'm not so sure," Quan looked away thoughtful. "Niu was like Li Hua's younger sister, but she was never adopted by Lord Cheng. When mother noticed that Niu was uncontrollable she made sure that she was kept as a servant. Li Hua was never a servant; she was a lady in waiting. That was the basic difference between the two of them. Li Hua was woman born into the arts, while Niu was more into the arms." Quan shook his head at remembering the other girl antics.

And thus Quan began to retell a memory that was brought to him by the younger female.

It took quite some time for Niu to arrive, and unlike Li Hua she didn't really grew up with us. Li Hua was four years older than Niu, and when the younger child arrived we truly didn't mixed with her at all. But having grown since young with Li Hua we both had a wonderful relationship.

I wasn't really allowed to have friends, mother being too strict with who I shared my time. You see even though I was her second son, she felt as if she had to give me the best. She thought that one day I was going to be someone important, and because of that she made sure to educate me the most.

By then Sun Ce was already following in my father's footsteps, and as you know he has shown a great amount of leadership. But I was more of a follower. When I spent time with Li Hua she was always the one to dictate where we would go to or what we would do together. Mother never liked that, she thought that I was going to grow into someone weak minded. She thought that any woman would easily control me and maybe she was right, maybe I needed to man up.

"Why don't you want to do what I want?" Li Hua protested one day as we shared a meal that was prepared by Xue.

"I want to, but I cannot be bossed by you." As a child I was always calm and collected.

"But you never suggest we do anything!" Li Hua screeched. She had dropped her plate to the floor, but she could no longer care. "Every time I say hey lets do this, you say no!" She kept fighting me.

And now that I think of it, since young Li Hua used to fight like a woman. She was never easily pleased and there was always an adventure in her mind. But I was still petrified of the day we fell into the river. Going on an adventure with her sounded like a terrible idea, and even though I tried to be the voice of reason between the two of us she was too hard headed.

"No, you need to calm down!" I raised my voice at her, my food forgotten as we got into a childlike argument. "We will do what I want to do. Not what _you_," I pointed at her chest, "want to do."

"No!" She yelled, her tiny hands taking a hold of me and pushing me away from her. "You will do what I want to do!"

"I will not!" I protested once more even though I was already on the floor.

And like the pair of children we were we began to fight against one another. We wrestled together, our verbal fight forgotten as we started to play that way. I never wanted to hurt her, so I actually tried to be careful with how we fought. She was not that careful.

She would throw herself against me, and even use all of her strength. Being children we were pretty even, so sometimes she would play dirty. Still she was smart, always looking for any weakness I could have. And some times she hurt me quite badly… I don't want to remember the pain of being kicked…

"Hey!" Sun Quan protested against the two women that surrounded him. "Don't laugh." But that only made their giggling stronger. "You two can cut it." Quan said as he allowed the two females the time to finally stop laughing at his pain.

But Quan knew they would never understand that type of pain. Because truth to be told, when a man cringes at the pain of another it is a good reason to believe of the suffering those had lived. Still once Quan was prepared to continue his story without having the females laughing he went on.

Fights like that were common between Li Hua and I. We would fight constantly over nothing, and then the fight would end up turning into a wrestling match. Li Hua always won those fights, because I took it easy on her. I wasn't about to harm a girl, but oneday things got out of hand. We were wrestling in Li Hua's room, a fight similar to the one I described before having occurred.

It only took one push from me. It was the only ounce of strength I had really used between the two of us, but that was all we needed. Li Hua had lost her balance as I fought my way out of her hold. She toppled over, her heels trying to regain some form of balance, while her hands wiggled in the air. Two steps were all she needed to break the vase, two steps that made her crash against a pillar, the beautiful blue china from Cheng Pu's wife being broken into tiny pieces.

The sound was all that was needed for the adults to run into the room. Xue was the first one to arrive, her mouth hanging as she opened her eyes as wide as she could. Right behind her came my mother, and what she saw made her angry. So angry that I swear I remember seeing her ears turning red. A few seconds were all she needed to find who she believed to be the culprit of the broken vase.

"Li Hua!" she yelled, her body coming over to my friend. "Do you have any idea how much that vase cost?"

Li Hua was petrified, she didn't answer verbally. It was with her clear blue eyes and a shake of the head that she responded to my mother's question.

"You insolent brat!" Mother moved forward, her hand quickly grasping Li Hua's arm. "I bought that gift to Lady Ning (2) when she gave birth Zi (3)." Mother was not evaluating her force because the hold she had on Li Hua was enough to scare her.

And I was scared for my friend. I was so scared that I got up from the floor and went towards mother. "No mom," I began softly. "Li Hua didn't broke it, I did."

"You did?" Mother was confused, her hold on Li Hua still there.

"Yes, I did." I reinforced my answer.

"Why would you break Lady Ning's things? Have you lost your respect for the dead?" She had now directed her angry glare in my direction, and I shuddered because I knew that I had a punishment for breaking things.

Mother was a strict woman, and just like her parents raised her she applied the same discipline to me. I was mostly a good boy for that reason, and Li Hua knew that.

"No!" she yelled. "I did it, I broke the vase, Quan is lying."

At that mother turned once more, her hand raised to struck down on Li Hua. But the hit never came.

That was the moment when we all considered Guotai our hero. She was brave enough to stand up to my mother. "Enough! If you dare to place one single finger on Li Hua I will not be responsible for my actions." And surprisingly mother conceded. She backed away, her hand taking a hold of mine as she pulled me by her side.

Li Hua was on the floor, Xue tending to her and my brother Lang. Meanwhile Guotai stood in front of them. I do not know what happened between my two mothers to see that even happening, but I knew that something occurred for them to decide to hold the peace. Still my mother was not one to back down, and as she was retreating from the room she stopped at the entrance.

"I believe you will be responsible for Li Hua's actions from now on. I do not want her anywhere near Quan, she would surely damage him; you saw him lying to me." Those were mother's last words as she took me away from my friend.

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(1) Bofu – Sun Ce's style name.

(2) Lady Ning – invented name in reference to Cheng Pu's wife.

(3) Zi – it refers to Cheng Zi, Cheng Pu's eldest son.

**Took me a while to actually get this chapter out. University life is quite a crazy thing. I barely even have time to eat! But such is life. I will try to update more often, but seeing as this year is being hell I dunno. **

**Besides that there are some great news coming around, and it is that the next Dynasty Warriors story is going strong. I have already written more than four chapters, but that project will only be published once it is finished. The sad thing is that it will be a pretty mature story so I have to evaluate if I have to tone down some details.**

**So I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and peace out.**

***This has not been edited.**


	10. Chapter 10

**No glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 10: When Her Family Tries

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Wu was a calm place during that time of the day. The bright ball in the sky still had not reached its peak over the green plains of Wu. The air was fresh and moist during the early days of the summer months. The sky was a bright blue adorned with feathery white clouds; the wind fresh as the aroma of flowers came flew by.

During that morning the sun was shining brightly over the two females that hid under the shade of a peach three. Both were calm, the younger female nearly falling asleep as her older sister caressed her hair. At that precise moment there was little to no tension.

Soft mumbling was heard as the dark haired sister sung softly. The elder Qiao hummed a calm and lulling tune that was accompanied by the chirping of birds. And for those who looked from afar everything seemed to be perfect for those who knew nothing of the sisters' life.

Xiao was calm, her mind coming and going as she was starting to fall asleep. Her sister's touch was calming for her, but her mind was trailing off. She could not stop thinking of him. Her husband was the man she had fallen in love with, but she felt betrayed by him. Many thoughts surrounded her relationship, but those thoughts were deeply hidden. She tried to calm herself, but it failed. And instead she found herself sighing profoundly.

Da noted how her younger sister's breathing had changed. She was seemingly acting as if she was asleep, but it was seemingly obvious that she wasn't. It was at that moment that Da thought that it was time to seize the moment.

"Why did you stop?" Xiao murmured as tried once more to snuggle to her sister's body.

"Hey Xiao," Da spoke softly.

"What is it?" the sleepy sister responded.

"We need to talk." No one really enjoys hearing those four words coming out from a loved one.

Soon enough Xiao was fully awake. Her sister no longer caressed her hair, nor was she resting her body atop the legs of her sister. Instead Xiao sat quietly biting at her lips as she waited for the tantrum to return. She had only a few days of rest before the ol' mumble jumbo began once more.

"I don't want to talk of him," Xiao was stern. She was tired of being told to try for her marriage's sake. She was tired of trying for a man that did not return her feelings.

"Please Xiao," Da countered. "You cannot keep acting like nothing is going on. Zhou Yu has been miserable since you retaliated." And by retaliating she meant of the cold shoulder she had given her husband.

"I could care less." Xiao was pouting.

"Stop acting like a child." Da sternly told her sister.

"I am a child!" Xiao wined.

"No Xiao, you are a woman. Father and mother doted too much on you. I did so too, and we all forgot to teach you that real life was sometimes not fair."

"Then my failing marriage is your fault." Xiao was on the defensive, she was looking everywhere for someone to take the blame for her.

"I did not married Lord Zhou. You could have rejected his offer. Father even gave you the option to do so. But you were smitten with him." With every word that Da spoke, she was finding it harder to keep up. She hated seeing her sister cry, and worse of all she hated being the one that brought it on.

"That was before he told me the truth of how he came to court me." Xiao stood up; she was tired of the same thing over and over again. She wanted a break from everything, but most of all she wanted to hide the tears that were threating to fall.

"That has nothing to do with the feelings he developed for you." Da was growing frustrated with her stubborn sister. She had been looking at the floor, but once she looked up she met the teary eyes of her younger sister. "Xiao, please…"

"No! I am tired of this. All you care is about how Lord Zhou is feeling. No one has bothered to sit down with me and hear what I'm feeling." By then her tears were falling freely from her eyes. "You no longer care for me as you used to." Finally telling her sister what she perceived as the truth, Xiao turned around and ran towards the Sun compound.

"Xiao, please!" The dark haired Qiao was about to run behind her sister, until she felt a male hand on her shoulder that stopped her on purpose.

"Let her be Da."

She knew who that man was. Immediately she turned around and clashed her body against her husband. Da Qiao was heart broken. She had been partly at fault for the pain her sister had to withstand.

"Oh Ce!" She cried her heart out to the man she loved. Strong arms surrounding her as he softly hushed her, words of solace whispered into her ears. Minutes went by as she took all the warmness of her husband. And it was then that she finally knew what her sister was lacking.

Xiao was lacking the comfort she could have from someone that loved her as much as she did to him or her. She was not being bratty; she was simply acting out her feelings. Xiao was a strong woman, but on the inside she was still a child that had much growth left to do. She was not mentally prepared to fight for what she thought was a lost cause. No, on the contrary, she had given up before even trying.

"Bofu, I know what we need to do for Xiao and Gongjin." She told her husband as she looked up at him, hope shining in her eyes.

"What do I need to do?" Sun Ce told his wife, his mind ready to give his max for his best friend.

"We need to round up everyone. Specially Lady Jen, she must guide us further. Xiao needs someone at all times, we no longer have Niu as our servant."

"I'll tell mother to make her company." Sun Ce suggested.

"But-"

"Don't worry Da, mother is not a demon as we all paint her to be."

"Are you sure?"

"Definitely," the confidence with which Sun Ce spoke of his suggestion, made Da smile at her husband.

"Then I shall take your word for it."

"Good, I'll round up everyone. We have some reunions for the next two days, so I guess we can do it two nights from now." Sun Ce was ready for action, his excitement contagious to his wife. "Don't you dare cry again on me. I want my beautiful wife as happy as she is beautiful."

Da's cheek reacted at her husband's remark, even though it did not made much sense. "Bofu that doesn't make any sense."

"Eh, thinking is not my strong point." He admitted, his body moving slowly away from his wife.

"Maybe you should sit down with Gongjin to study." Da Qiao humored him.

"Nah," Ce began, but coming quick to his wife for a soft peck at the lips. "Leave all the thinking to Zhou Yu. But remember this, if the problem has no solution. Then we just haven't tried enough times." And with another peck to her small lips, Ce had finally turned away and ran towards the training grounds. In that place some of his men were starting to wonder if he had decided to skip on training once more.

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**It has been a short one. I'll see if I can update more often -no promise- but I have also been working on the other DW story. I like that one better, but probably is because it has my favorite DW character. **

**tl;dr - I'll be working on the next chapter.**

***This has not been edited.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Glossary at the end. Enjoy!**

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**Bloody Mary: The Essence**

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Chapter 11: Getting Caught, not Once but Twice

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Xiao never understood why out of nowhere Lady Wu had decided to accompany her. But she suspected that the event had been something planned by her elder sister. Still Xiao Qiao tried her best to remain composed in the powerful presence of Lady Wu.

The elder woman rarely smiled, and when she did they seemed insincere smiles. However the love and admiration she received from the people was enough to second-guess her opinion on Lady Wu. The mature woman and the wife of Zhou Yu were traveling around the busy street of Yangxian. They had all made a home into the city, and meanwhile Sun Ce was busy with managing the military, his mother was in charge of handling the people.

"Lady Wu!" An older man of over sixty springs moved agilely towards the two females. Meanwhile a couple of guards came up front to receive him, thus creating some distance from the women.

"Arms down my men," Lady Wu spoke confidently as she approached the man. "What is it that your heart requires?" Wu asked as she studied the figure of the man that breathed deeply as if to regain his composure.

"My family desires to offer this humble gift to you for watching over our people." The man said as he kneeled deeply, his forehead nearly touching the floor. His hands were extended towards the guards that stood between the woman and the man, in them a pot of recently boiled rice being presented.

"I shall gladly accept your gift on behalf of the Sun family. May the Heavens shower your family with grace." And she did as she spoke, her body moving to receive the present from the man. One of her hands gently guiding him to stand on his own, her next words surprising some. "I am not a goddess to be treated with such admiration, but I can hear out your qualms and see what can be done."

Xiao was awestruck. The elder woman received the present from the man, and after hearing a petition from him she bid him farewell. She was a completely different individual from what she could see with her interaction with the people. Crowds moved towards her and brought her all of the worries they had to voice, and like a benevolent leader she heard them well.

Children came towards Lady Wu in flocks. They wanted to receive her attention, and she brought them what they looked for. Mothers looking from afar as they admired the qualities Lady Wu brought fort to the people. Stories of ancient times were told and knowledge was shared with the newest generation of people. It was a busy day for Lady Wu in the streets of Yangxian, but once she found herself with enough interactions for the day, she bid her farewell to the people.

Xiao had turned into a shadow of Lady Wu during that day. She had followed the woman to different parts of the city, and her eyes met with different types of situations she had not seen before. The younger Qiao had always been a woman brought up surrounded by the comfort her father could provide. She had been a woman that had been blind to how the people beneath them lived and it was that way in which she gained a new perception in her life. Not only had she seen with her own eyes a different form of Lady Wu, but she had also seen the importance of serving the people.

Both women were returning to the palace grounds before the sun hid from the sky. It was then that Xiao wondered if maybe everyone was wrong on Lady Wu. However, she wondered if all of those promises the woman made were all in vain. And without an ounce of regret she questioned Lady Wu on their way home.

"Lady Wu, if you don't mind." Xiao began and bit shy contrary to her vocal temperament.

"Xiao," Wu began her body stopping as her eyes moved towards the young female. "If you are wondering if I'm making promises to the people with otiose. Then I suggest you to interact more often with governors and administrators of your home place."

"I…" young Xiao felt as if she had been caught stealing a cookie.

"Calm down child," Lady Wu told the female as she placed a hand on her chin. It was that way, how she pulled Xiao's head upwards to stare directly into her eyes. "I am not the monster that all wish of me to be. I admit in my house I am a stern woman, but with the people I will always give my all."

"Is that why you were so mean to Li Hua?" Xiao blurted her thoughts.

Lady Wu paused; she thought quickly what she was about to say before she committed sin through her mouth. "There are many decisions that one makes when young that we will repent in the future. I bear the weight of many over my shoulders."

Xiao stared at the solemn woman. No one had really seen much of that side of Lady Wu, but in a way it seemed as if all the years Lady Wu lived had began to show in her tired face. She seemed older in an instant. Her eyes looked tired and seemingly dark circles appeared to form out of nowhere. Her stance had fallen and she no longer stood to her full height. Behind her façade there were many thoughts that tortured her and for once she allowed someone through her strong fort.

"What do you mean by that?" Xiao was worried, both of them were no longer on the streets, instead they were sitting down in the chambers Lady Wu used to share with her deceased husband.

"Once things are done or even said, there is no way to take them back." Wu said as she looked down towards her worn out hands. "I wish to take many things back, Li Hua, Wentai and even my sister were among the ones I hurt the most."

"But why?"

"To be honest I still do not know myself."

"But there must be a reason," Xiao tried to find the logic behind her words and strange behaviors.

"You could say jealousy, being young, acting on impulse…" Lady Wu sighed her eyes staring at the cold tea she had served. "Sometimes I would say ignorance."

"Isn't ignorance a bliss?" Xiao questioned as she pondered the old saying.

"Ignorance is a bliss, until it catches up to you. You can be ignorant all you want, but there will come a day in which you will see how far had your ignorance hurt those you love the most. I was superstitious upon Li Hua's origins; she was just too different from us. What never really came to my mind was that she had grown between us…"

Li Hua had been a strange girl from the very beginning. She was bright and wise beyond her years. She never treated anyone lesser than her. Because for Li Hua, everyone was the same, she could care less of the origins of a person, color or even hair texture. She was simply open-minded, I saw her many times sharing her time with an elder from the village. He was a hermit that lived in the mountains, a man also known as a Taoist. She looked up at him, and the many times she had been gone away from home, I have always found her with the man.

I knew the presence of a Taoist near the child was not of good omen. I knew that Li Hua was meant to do great things in her life; from early on she believed everyone was equal. The Taoist she frequented had damaged her way of thinking. She did not accept our Confucius ideals, nor would she ever come to understand that women were beneath men. She had that imprinted in her soul and even though I tried to force her to understand our ways she never once adapted.

Li Hua was a good child when one ignored her challenging attitudes. She questioned everything and was exceedingly curious, she even challenged our authority as she found loops or grey areas between our rules.

That was how she found herself spending time with Quan. It was always behind our backs, but she would sometimes trick her brothers into bringing Quan to her. And she always got what she wanted.

Soon enough I learned how sly she could be. Anything was game for her, and if she had not tried a new way to approach things, she would usually find a way. Had she been a man, we would all have accepted her way of thinking. But she was a woman, and she had to act under the rules that were socially implied for us. Still she never accepted it.

She damaged Quan into thinking that women were equal. She taught him that she could bend the truth and that nothing could go wrong. Because for her, as long as the truth could be bended, she was never lying, that was why we used to say that Li Hua never lied. However, she rarely spoke the truth.

By then Sun Ce was starting to come out as a young man. He rarely spent time with us, seeing as his father was preparing him to take over one day. We never knew that Wentai would die as young as he did, but it should had not been a surprise for all. Men that decided to bear arms never lived long enough to tell their story. That's the reason why we women stayed behind; we had enough on our hands with raising the next generation. It was that why shouldn't mingle in men's business.

"But weren't you working to get information from the people?" Xiao was confused on the goal Lady Wu had with her interaction in town.

"I am only a mean in the works of men. All I saw and heard will be reported to the governor."

"If you cannot do anything, then why do you do it?"

"Xiao, I only follow the commands from others. It has worked fairly well for us, and it also gives me enough freedom to enjoy the last years of my life."

"But you have no choice," Xiao furrowed her brows. "How can you be happy living like that?"

Lady Wu smiled, it was tiny but it was present. "Young Qiao, wife of Lord Zhou Yu." Xiao visibly hardened at her words. "You are so alike Li Hua, but also so different. It is no wonder Lord Zhou had taken you as wife."

"He married me because I reminded him of her?" Xiao eyes widened, she could not believe what was being told.

"No," Wu moved her head from left to right. "He married you because he saw something in you. I highly doubt he sees Li Hua every time he looks at you. You have qualities similar to Li Hua, but you are unique in your essence. Zhou Yu is a man blessed by the heavens to have you as a wife."

It was partially the truth that Lady Wu saw Li Hua in Xiao Qiao, but she highly doubted Zhou Yu was aware of that. Though she never voiced that, Xiao seemed to grow lowly but steadily. She quieted her rowdy voice and allowed time for her to mull over everything she had learned. Afterwards she would soon come to a conclusion, however slow it came, she would have gained a glimpse of the pain her husband suffered.

Back then Li Hua always found a way to enjoy her time with Quan. Still she was not as sly as she would have wished to be. Her slyness would become greater with time, and only one person was capable of finding her then. Though now both were separated, young Niu was exceedingly perceptive of her surroundings. She was the first to learn of Li Hua's appreciation of Lord Zhou Yu, and she was also quick to oversee all of Li Hua's interactions.

Still back then there was only Li Hua, no other unique child to accompany her. Meanwhile Niu… she was a different story on itself.

It wasn't often when I got to catch Li Hua in the act of crawling around as she played with Quan. I was always vigilant to stop it from ever occurring, but I couldn't be everywhere.

I remember the day when I had caught up to her and two of my sons. I was away for the day receiving my two youngest from their trip with my brother, Wu Jing (1). The Cheng household was not big enough to hold two families in, and soon enough we knew we had to part to our homes.

Sun Bofu had arrived on that same day with my two youngest, Sun Yi (2) and Sun Kuang (3). It was a house full of over ten children, the four children of Cheng, the newborn Lang, the four children of Lady Wu, along with two children from Sun Qiang (4).

Those few weeks were extremely busy in between. We were to little adults for so many children. The workers seemed to multiply themselves during those days; meanwhile the men were away in reunions that seemed to have no end. The next few weeks the battle would start once more and everyone would have to move away. That was how we had to learn to live our lives during the times of war. We were either far apart for long months or we were close enough to battle to fear for our lives.

Seeing as I had been busy. Bofu, who at the time was thirteen springs, would escape his reunions with his father. He would surprise everyone, and he seemed to have luck in finding Quan and Li Hua together. He would keep quiet the countless of escapades the youngsters shared, and as the older brother I could seem to understand. Though that did not mean that I approved of it.

It was that way, how I found them once. I had arrived to the Cheng household earlier than expected. Most of the adults were away celebrating the first twenty-eight days of Lang. I was happy for the child my husband and sister adored, but it hurt seeing them together as a family. I was pained when I saw my sister smiling at Wentai. The spark of jealousy was enormous when I saw him returning her smile with a joyous look. He was happy with their extended family, and I couldn't bear to witness it all, he simply could not imagine how hurt I felt.

To this day I can vividly remember his smile.

I had sat down to cry.

And quite visibly Lady Wu was releasing tears as she told Xiao how she felt that day. The younger Qiao was visibly shaken, she had heard Wu Guotai's tale, but she never stopped to think that Lady Wu was experiencing the same thing. Both women were in pain because of a man that had mistakenly selected sisters as wives, no one deserved the pain they had to live through. However that did not separated the sisters, because even though they had countless of reasons to fight, they cooperated with one another. It was amazing how they had suppressed their hate towards one another, but still there was much to learn from the women.

"Lady Wu, I…" but Xiao couldn't continue, she couldn't bear to see the woman cry. Lady Wu was a stoic woman, but her ice had melted away.

"I am alright Xiao," the older woman said as she moved away from Xiao's hand. "Just give me a minute." It was amazing how Lady Wu recovered her composure from breaking down crying. It took less than a minute for her to bring her walls up once more. Still she was trembling because of her strong emotions, the cup of tea visibly shaking as she brought it to her lips.

A few more breaths and Lady Wu was continuing the story exactly where she had left it.

Soon enough a melodic sound of laughter reached my ears. I knew there was only one possibility. I followed it, and that was when I saw them together.

I felt the anger rise within me. Quan had faked feeling ill that morning before I had left to the celebration. And I would have stayed with him, if it weren't for the fact that I had to keep up the pretense of the perfect family. It hurt, not only was I being deceived in my own face by the man who swore to love me, and my own sister, but Quan had also taken to participate in the game.

I had allowed my feelings to overtake me. I knew Li Hua had not been invited to the celebration because I was not the only one who believed in the bad omens. Other adults had sided with me when the chance sprung to have that discussion. But she had done it on purpose.

Quan was forbidden to spend his time with the adopted daughter of Lord Cheng. But worse of all, I had forbidden them to go anywhere near the river for their own sake. They had belittled me. With them Sun Ce had taken in on the action, he had later told me that he discovered the two children playing. He knew of the rule I had to reinforce, he just believed they wouldn't get caught by me. I simply could not believe it all.

Everyone had taken me for granted in this household. And with nothing left inside me but seething anger, I retaliated. I mistreated young Li Hua. Something I deeply regret.

"I still feel guilty of taking out my anger on Li Hua." Lady Wu was calm, however deep sadness could be easily detected in her eyes. "Had I learned to be more tolerant and accepted her, she wouldn't have to face that monster." She had placed down her empty china cup, her finger trailing over the gold design it had.

"Could Cao Cao be as bad as they say?" Xiao innocently questioned.

"He is the worse," Lady Wu answered, before shooing the young Qiao from her quarters.

* * *

(1) Wu Jing – historical brother of Lady Wu.

(2) Sun Yi – historical son of Sun Jian, born in 184.

(3) Sun Kuang – historical son of Sun Jian, no known year of birth.

(4) Sun Qiang – deceased twin brother of Sun Jian, whose children (among them was Sun Ben) were raised by Sun Jian.

**Answer to **hmm **\- first of all thanks for the review. I do know I need to add loads of details, I'm really sloppy with this story on that behalf. Hope this chapter fixes it a little, while I get my hands on editing the rest of the story. Anywho thanks for the review, I hope in the future you get to enjoy the plot as it develops. **

**Well guys, no promise on when next update may come. Too busy with university, but I'll try. However I'll be working on the next chapter for my other story so, yeah no promise on that.**


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